


Words (Don’t Come Easy)

by empireoffclouds



Category: Football RPF, real madrid
Genre: Basically Isco gets his wisdom teeth removed and confesses his love for Toni, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M, Pure fluff honestly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-14 16:40:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14140152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/empireoffclouds/pseuds/empireoffclouds
Summary: “Toni just looks like a tomato turned human, his whole face on fire, eyes wide and mouth open. He would find this funny. He really would. If not for the fact that he really has been stupidly in love with Isco for quite a while”.





	Words (Don’t Come Easy)

**Author's Note:**

> So here it is, another completely self indulgent Tonisco fic.

"Well," Zidane says, adjusting the zipper of his training jacket and leveling them with a tired look, "the doctor said he's supposed to rest for the next few days, only eat soft food like soup or pureed fruit and vegetables. And don't let him brush his teeth for the next two days."

Toni and Marco nodded gingerly to what Zidane said, ingraining his instructions into their brains while Isco sat on the sofa of their shared living room, completely limp, staring against the ceiling, his cheeks swollen.

When Isco returned from the dentist a few weeks prior from his checkup, he greeted them with the news that his wisdom teeth had to be removed at some point. All four of them. And since he is now twenty four, this should better happen sooner rather than later. He talked to Zidane and Zidane talked to Florentino and they agreed it'd be better to get it all over with in one go. Get those teeth out all at once and have Isco out of order for just a few days. Then go on with business as usual and don't have to think about it again. That was the plan.

So, Toni and Marco were picked out to be Isco’s chaperons after the surgery. Sergio and Marcelo were scheduled for some press event, Cristiano was in Portugal attending to some family issue, and it seemed as though everyone else had taken use of their unusual days off to do something they couldn’t get out off. Of course, Toni knew they were only lazy shits who couldn’t be arsed to look after a incoherent Isco for a few days.

"Okay," Zidane says, looking at Isco who started to softly touch his swollen cheeks, still staring at the ceiling, "he's still out of it from the painkillers they gave him, I don't know when those will wear off but have an eye on him."

Toni and Marco nod with a cheerful "Yes, sir!" and Zidane smiles tiredly at them, then leaves the room.

"Hey, hey, Isco," Toni sits down next to the spaniard on the sofa, facing him, "how was it?"

Isco takes a moment to react, glancing at Marco through half lidded eyes, who's standing in front of him, looking at him expectantly, then at Toni who was next to him. Then he closes his eyes and swallows.

"I didn't feel anything."

"Well," Marco says, "that's good, right?"

"I guess so," Isco drawls, lifting his head from the back of the couch and looking around. "Where am I?"

Marco snorts, mischief shining in his eyes and he pulls out his smartphone from the pockets of his training shorts. "Well, you're at home, Valdebebas."

"Huh," is the only thing Isco responds, slowly nodding a few times. They watch him, expectantly.

"You know," he then says, expression completely serious, "there was... there was a unicorn at the dentist's."

"A unicorn?" Out of the corner of his eyes Toni could see Marco fighting against his laughter, now undoubtedly filming everything Isco says and does.

"Yeah, a fucking unicorn." Isco gestures with his hands, still slow and sluggish, like he doesn't know what to do. "It was a big pumpkin and then it turned into a unicorn, like, poof!"

Marco was full on chuckling now, a hand clamped over his mouth from preventing laughter to break out. Toni doesn't fare any better, biting his lip to hide his smile. Not very successfully.

"Well," he then breathes heavily, choking back a laugh, "that's pretty cool, I've never seen a real unicorn."

Isco nods solemnly. "Yeah. Fuck yeah that was some cool shit. Cool shit. Really cool shit. Picha. Bro. Pichabro. Bropicha."

By this point Marco is nearly in hysterics, squatting down and almost losing his balance.

"Dude, this is gold, this is absolute gold," he almost whispers and wipes his eyes, the phone in his hand shaking but still recording.

"But dude," Isco suddenly says, looking at Toni, then at Marco, "is... is this real? Like... foreal real? Real life?"

"Yeah, it's real."

"Am I dead?" Isco is still looking at Marco, eyes wide, making him look like an overgrown hamster with his cheeks still severely swollen. "Be honest with me, am I dead?"

"Nah," Marco says, smiling, "you're very much alive."

Isco slumps in his seat, relief visible, accentuated by the deep sigh leaving his lips.

"Good, oh man, that's so good!"

He raises his hands, looking at his outstretched index fingers, eyes wide. "Oh my god, Marco look," he says with an awed expression, "I have four fingers."

"Sure you do." Marco’s nearly choking on his laughter but, like the trooper he is, he hasn't stopped filming yet.

"Woah," Isco is still looking at his fingers like they are the most interesting and amazing things he has ever seen, "I feel so weird right now, like," he swallows down a line of spit that threatened to flow out of his mouth, "like I'm on a fucking cloud or some shit."

"Well, you're high on painkillers," Toni concedes, lips pulling into his trademark half grin,"so I guess that feeling is pretty accurate."

Isco suddenly looks at Toni like he just realized he's there.

"Oh my god," he whispers, lifting a hand and gently touching Toni’s pale cheek. "Oh my god."

Marco cackles at Toni’s shellshocked expression, grin wiped off his face while Isco looks at him with wide eyes, jaw slack.

"What is it?"

"I..." Isco starts, then shakes his head, really almost maddeningly slow, "who are you?"

Marco and Toni look at each other with a mixture of confusion and shock. Marco just shrugs his shoulders in a What can you do? kind of way, like Isco just hasn't forgotten one of his closest friends. Probably temporarily. Still weird.

Isco meanwhile has moved his hand, gently pushing Toni’s stray blond hairs away from his forehead and to the side, expression as solemn as it can get when you have two cheeks the size of tangerines.

"Well," Toni tries, his ears unbearably hot at the way Isco continues to shamelessly caress his face, "who do you think I am?"

Isco shakes his head again. "I don't know," he breathes, "but I'm sure Marco has lied to me about being dead."

"How come?"

"Oh god, bro, don't say it," Marco pleads, his stomach hurting from suppressing his laughter all this time. He knows what's coming now. He has seen enough cheesy novelas not to. And the look on Isco’s face just says it all.

"Because you must be the angel taking me to heaven."

At that, Marco completely breaks, clutching his stomach with one hand and his phone with the other, tears streaming down his cheeks while uncontrolled laughter spills from his lips. Toni just looks like a tomato turned human, his whole face on fire, eyes wide and mouth open. He would find this funny. He really would. If not for the fact that he really has been stupidly in love with Isco for quite a while.

Isco is still oblivious to Marco almost suffocating on the living room floor and Toni just wishes himself a hole in the ground so he could just vanish. And Isco just doesn't stop.

"But I can't die yet," Isco then says, voice suddenly really serious and his brows are pulled together and he tries to pull his lips down into a frown, which is not at all working, making him look more cute then threatening. Toni almost coos.

"Why can't you die, Isco? Tell us," Marco croaks and wipes his wet cheeks with the long sleeve of his sweater.

Isco whips his head in his direction, looking at the elder, almost scandalized. "Because I still haven't told Toni how much I love him!"

Toni almost feels like having an out of body experience. His wide eyes are glued to Isco’s face, who is still looking at Marco like he just asked him if the sky is really blue. Marco though, is merciless.

"But Isco, Toni knows that you love him"

Toni violently shakes his head, motioning Marco to stop because he was way too scared of what might come out of Isco’s mouth now.

He's not disappointed.

"Noooooo, Marco" Isco looks down at Marco and the latter frowns at his condescendingly raised eyebrow. "You don't understand. I don't love Toni. I _love_ him."

Again, Toni and Marco look at each other and Toni’s eyes and expression are so pleading, that Marco actually stops filming, confusion taking over his features. And they're both not sure in what territory they are treading now. Was Isco really confessing his love for Toni right here? Or was it just the painkillers messing with his head, making his tongue lose and his speech unfiltered, his mush like brain blurting out everything he was thinking.

Well, Isco also thought that he saw a pumpkin turning into a unicorn, so...

Still oblivious to the silence that has engulfed them, Isco sinks back into the sofa with a contented sigh.

"I want to hold his hands and hug him and kiss him and go on dates with him," he mumbles, eyes closing shut, "and show him how beautiful he is and," he yawns, face contorting a little as the motion pulls on his sore muscles, "and let him know that when he smiles the world seems to be a better place..."

And then his breathing evens out, chest slowly rising and falling.

Toni can feel Marco’s eyes on him. It prickles on his skin like goosebumps. And he doesn't dare to look at him, way to aware on how his eyes are still glued to Isco’s peaceful face, how his face is still hot and most probably red.

He closes his eyes and swallows hard. "Let's," he tries, but his voice sounds thick, a little raspy. Toni clears his throat, tries again.

"Let's just get him into bed and... let him sleep it off."

Marco just nods, silently, refraining from saying anything because of the suddenly really heavy atmosphere and the way Toni avoids his eyes.

Both of them are glad, that Isco is a heavy sleeper and most probably sleeps even deeper now from being just purely exhausted. They pull him upright, supporting a side each and heave Isco’s limp body into the room he normally shares with Nacho. They don't bother to hoist him into his own bed across the room, just dropping him onto Nacho’s and covering him with the blankets. Their teammate sure wouldn't mind.

"He's pretty out of it," Toni says, voice stiff, as soon as they shut the door behind them. He still clutches the handle, looks at his hand. Not knowing what to do, Marco just nods.

"Yeah," he says, "he probably won't even remember what he said when he wakes up."

Toni looks at the ceiling, wondering what he had done in the past for Karma kicking his ass like that. Or maybe Karma was repaying him for all the good deeds? He really wasn't sure right now.

"You're right." His voice was little above a whisper. "He probably won't."

///////

When Toni realises that Isco in fact does remember the little scene that had unfolded the day before, he doesn't know if he should be relieved or scared. He runs into Isco on his way to the bathroom, right after waking up and the younger just looks at him, completely mortified.  
"Isco..." Toni starts, voice soft as if he was talking to a frightened animal. "How are you today?"

Isco’s Adams apple is bobbing when he swallows hard, still looking at Toni like a deer caught in headlights. Or more like a hamster, with his swollen cheeks. Toni still thinks it's kind of cute.

"Good. A little sore. But I have painkillers," he says curtly, his eyes never leaving Toni’s. The elder is slowly lifting his hands in a calming gesture and when Toni starts speaking again, his voice is still unbearably soft.

"Isco, you know, about yesterday-"

"You know, I'm still really tired and I think I'm going back to bed," Isco almost yells, cutting Toni off completely and leaving him in the empty hallway, in front of the bathroom.

When he hears the door to Isco’s and Nacho’s room click shut, Toni sighs and completely deflates.

Well, that went extremely well.

But he knew Isco and he knew how he dealt with uncomfortable situations. Avoidance.

And this was a situation the younger would rather have disappear in thin air than face at all. Toni knows that all too well. Isco was aware of the fact that Toni now not only knows that he, well, swings that way, what ever that way is in the end, but also that he has feelings for Toni, that very strongly cross the border out of friendship territory.

The thing that he doesn't know is though, that Toni feels exactly the same way about Isco and has been for so long he can't even remember.

Toni wants to rip out his hair. This could be so easy. He knows Isco’s feelings and he wants to reciprocate them so badly. And really. It could be so easy. They could be cuddling and kissing and holding hands right this moment.

If Isco wasn't so scared of Toni rejecting him because of his accidental confession.

But Toni was not one to give up so easily.

Especially not when it concerned Isco.

///////

The week passed and Toni didn't get a single chance to talk to Isco in private. Not a single one. Isco actively avoids Toni at this point and even practices were a somewhat awkward affair since the younger man tried to keep his distance to Toni at all cost. It was quite obvious too.  
"Toni," Sergio stops Toni one evening, his hand resting on his shoulder the moment he wants to leave the gym.

He turns to his captain, a smile on his face that he really doesn't feel. "What is it, Sergio?" He knows what this is about as soon as Sergio looks at him with a worried expression. He just knows.

"Did Isco and you have a fight? Do you need me to talk to him?"

Toni sighs, lets his fingers run through his sweaty hair.

"It's," he starts, but doesn't find the right words to say it. "No, it's fine. I've got it under control."

Sergio doesn't seem convinced, but he gives Toni’s shoulder a squeeze. It's alright, he seems to say. You can rely on me.

"Are you sure? Because it's really weird seeing you two... not talking or constantly being glued to each other."

"I know, I know. It's just," Toni tries again, "complicated." He feels lame, like he just changed the relationship status on his non-existent facebook account. But Sergio knows when he has to stop prying, so he just nods.

"Okay," he says, giving Toni a pat on the back, "alright." Sergio then proceeds to leave, making Toni the only one left in the now empty gymnasium.

After a few steps he turns around again, scratching the back of his neck. "But you know, you can talk to me if you need help, okay?"

At that Toni has to smile, touched by Sergio’s honest concern. He nods.

"Sure will do"

///////

The opportunity to talk to Isco comes faster than Toni imagined. He's at the gym with Sergio, the older man showing him a part of his new routine that Toni saw him doing and really wants to try out, when the door behind them opens and Isco steps in.  
"Sergio, I'm here, you said you-" Isco completely stills when he sees Toni sitting next to Sergio, looking up at him, surprise coloring his face.

Sergio jumps out of his seat, and grabs Isco by the shoulders before he can actually bolt, which he most definitely had in mind.

"Oh, good, Isco, you're here," he says, almost overly casual and pushes Isco into the chair of the machine he just abandoned, not even giving him a chance to put down his bag. Isco’s eyes are almost comically wide when he is pushed almost directly into Toni’s personal space, their knees knocking against each other when he's shoved down into the chair.

Almost lightning quick Sergio backtracks out the door, leaving with a short "I'm going to get us some water!", but not only before looking at Toni and actually winking at him conspiratorially. Toni can only stare at him, gratefully, before the door clicks shut.

Sergio even goes as far as to lock the room and Toni makes a mental note to give the captain the biggest hug he has in his repertoire. Or invite him out for food. Or both.

But before he can dive deeper into ways on how to show Sergio his eternal gratitude, he needs to focus on the task at hand. Which is talking to Isco. Confessing his feelings to Isco. To Isco, who is sitting in front of him like he was dragged into court.

"Isco..." Toni starts, and again, his voice is so soft, so soft. Like Isco is something fragile. And precious. Carefully he puts a hand on Isco’s knee and the younger jumps at the action, body tense. Toni presses on, not wanting to let this opportunity go to waste.

"We need to talk."

These words. So overused and heavy. And yes, Toni knows that he could've picked a better way to start this conversation, since Isco seems to tense up even more, eyes almost comically large by now. The swelling of his cheeks has completely vanished, Toni notices. He can now see how his jaw clenches.

"About what?" Isco’s voice is as tense as the rest of his body and almost not audible. Toni lets out a deep breath, trying to calm his erratic heartbeat and looks at Isco. Really looks at him. Sees the deep brown of his irises, the small scar on his cheek. The way his black hair almost falls into his eyes.

He stops himself. Later. There was time for this later.

"You know, about that day, when you got your wisdom teeth removed."

Toni can almost hear Isco swallow, feels the muscles of his thigh tighten underneath his hand.

"Why would you want to talk about that?" Isco is avoiding his eyes, his gaze fixed stubbornly on a point somewhere on the wall behind Toni. "There is nothing to talk about."

"Except there is, a lot actually."

At that, Isco looks at Toni and his heart almost breaks at how scared the younger looks.

"Toni, I really really don't want to talk about how I confessed to you while being high on painkillers. Really. I don't."

"But, why?" Toni knows why. He knows that Isco is scared. And he spells the words that Isco can't. "Are you so scared that I might reject you?"

A pause. Then, with his eyes cast down, Isco says:

"Yes."

His voice is barely above a whisper now. Smiling Toni takes Isco’s hands that are clenched in his lap into his own, prying Isco’s fingers out of their fists and gently wraps them with his own slender ones.

"Well," he then says, eyes crinkling with the wide smile he gives Isco, his heart flooding with warmth and happiness, "you really don't need to be scared of that. Because, that will not happen."

Isco looks at him. Blinks once. Blinks twice.

"What?"

He doesn't get out more than a pathetic croak and Toni’s small smile only widens. Isco feels like he's staring directly into the sun and he really doesn't want to avert his eyes. Ever.

"You heard me," Toni giggles, fucking giggles, and it makes the swarm of butterflies in Isco’s stomach go completely bananas. Like every time Toni smiles at him like that. Or smiles in general. Or laughs. Or makes a joke. Or simply talks. Or...

"But I think you need me to explicitly tell you, so..." Straightening his back and with a very solemn look on his sharp features, Toni fixes his gaze onto Isco’s face.

"Isco Alarcón, I really really like you," he proclaims, a spark in his eyes Isco has never seen before, but one he would most definitely like to get used to, "and I might just be in love with you. A lot."

And again, Isco just looks at him. And he blinks. Once. Twice. And when Isco doesn't say anything, Toni is really scared that he got it all wrong, that Isco wasn't in love with him, that he was just really embarrassed about what happened. But then, after a few moments, Isco relaxes, like the tension of more than two weeks has finally lifted off his shoulders.

He finally returns Toni’s smile, eyes crinkling into halfmoons, teeth showing, and it made Toni fall just a little bit more for the young man in front of him.

"I really like you too, Toni," Isco finally says, voice steady and sure and he leans in to get their foreheads to touch. "I really really like you."

And they just sit there, reveling in each others presence, feeling the body heat of the other engulf them. Content. Until Toni breaks the silence, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"So," he says cupping Isco’s cheek with a soft hand, "is it okay if I kiss you now?"

Isco laughs, a soft sound that makes Toni’s spine tingle.

"Yes."

And he doesn't need more encouragement than that, having waited, weeks, months, maybe even years for this chance. Toni leans in, Isco meeting him halfway, eyes falling shut. And yes, when their lips finally meet, soft and a little hesitant, it really felt like fireworks and butterflies. But the most prominent feeling, that made Toni’s insides turn to mush and his heart all warm, was home. Isco felt like home.

Toni linked his hands behind Isco’s neck and the younger carefully put his hands on Toni’s shoulders, as if the other was made of glass or would vanish if he touched him too hard. And just like their touches, the kiss was soft, almost chaste, just lips moving against each other in a slow and tentative rhythm.

They really didn't hear when Sergio came back. Really.

"Hey guys, I hope you two could- whoa," he stepped inside, seeing Toni and Isco separating with a start.

Sergio looks at them, Toni’s face bright red, Isco smiling like a madman.

"Okay," he then says flatly, "okay. Yeah. I see you two made out, uh, I mean, made up, hahaha." Awkwardly laughing, he scratched his neck, stepping backwards out the door. "I'm just leaving, yes? I'll meet you at the field. Okay? Okay."

One last time, Sergio crashes into the door frame with his shoulder and with another "Okay." he shuts the door and vanishes down the corridor, feeling embarrassed to the core.

Isco and Toni share a look between mortification and amusement. But when Isco starts laughing, Toni can't help but join.

**Author's Note:**

> As always I hope you liked it guys, and if you did then pleaaaaase leave kudos/comments because they truly inspire me to keep writing.
> 
> Also send any requests you have to my tumblr mexisco (and also follow me there if you want :) ).


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